𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇 𝐌𝐔𝐒𝐈𝐂 | 범규

𐮙23𐮙

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‧₊˚ ☁️ ₊˚ෆ ͙
chapter twenty three: her wounds.
˖ ࣪ ‹  ⁺˖ 𓂃♫♫♫𓈒 ⸝⸝
"i was terrified!"
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she lifted her head as she heard her name being called, completely surprised by the person standing before her. he ran toward her and hugged her tightly, catching her off guard. she froze, doing nothing as he embraced her, gently stroking her hair, trying his best to comfort her.

"i gave him what he deserved. don't worry; i gave him a black eye. no one talks to my sister like that!" he declared, but she pushed him away.

"this is all your fault. i was scared—i was too scared to do anything, and it's because of you!" she shouted, tears filling her eyes. he was stunned and confused, wondering what he had to do with this tangled mess. but seeing her like this, overwhelmed with emotions and shaking, reminded him of those days he'd make her look the same with his words. blaming her for the inevitable.

"you made me feel like i... i am never capable of doing anything right, of everything being my fault! i was terrified- i thought i was doing the right thing" she struggled to breathe and he rushed to hold her by her shoulders, his eyes brimming with tears at the sight of her. "calm down, eunji!" he shook her gently but she shook her head, spiraling out of control.

he pulled her into a hug. when she stopped shaking, he frowned and pulled back to look at her face. "fuck, eunji wake up! what's wrong?" taehyun called out, panic filling his voice as he held his unmoving sister, desperately trying to wake her.

˖ ࣪ ‹  ⁺˖ 𓂃THROUGH MUSIC

after rushing her to the hospital, aecha and taehyun anxiously waited for the doctor's explanation. taehyun had told aecha everything.

"yeah, and then i punched the jerk!" taehyun said, feeling a sense of bravery for punching beomgyu, but aecha smiled humorlessly and punched him on his shoulder.

"and just so you know, i punched you because you treated her the same before. you deserved it." aecha replied, a sarcastic smile on her face as she looked at him, annoyed. taehyun, taken aback, was reminded of his harsh words and the blame he had placed on his sister. he sat down, covering his face with his hands.

aecha felt a bit of pity for him and considered apologizing, but she noticed mrs. kang walking down the corridor. she quickly went to greet her.

"mrs. kang! you're here!" aecha asked, smiling nervously as she walked beside her.

"my dear, how is eunji? what happened to her?" mrs. kang replied, stopping when she noticed taehyun sitting in despair, looking as though he might be crying. "taehyun? why are you crying? is eunji all right?" she asked, and aecha widened her eyes, wondering if she had hit him too hard, either with her words or fist.

"what? no, mom, i'm not crying. i was waiting for the doc—" he stopped mid-sentence as he noticed the doctor coming out of eunji's room. they rushed forward, anxious for news.

the doctor looked at them sympathetically. "well, she looks really exhausted, mentally mostly. i think she needs therapy."

"how? she's never told me..." her mother responded, as calmly as she could manage.

"well, she's kept her feelings bottled up which certainly affects her physical health as well, i suggest you seek help from a therapist" the doctor repeated. before walking away with a soft smile.

taehyun felt his palms grow sweaty, guilt and concern weighing heavily on him. he realized again how deeply his words and actions had affected his sister.

˖ ࣪ ‹  ⁺˖ 𓂃THROUGH MUSIC

days passed, and eunji's therapist recommended she avoid anything that reminded her of the painful event haunting her daily and start her healing journey.

eunji splashed her face with water, letting the cool droplets roll down her cheeks and jaw. she sighed, dried her face, and went downstairs to tell her mother about her decision.

after greeting her mother with a warm "good morning" and sitting down, she said: "mom, i know your surgery went well, and you're healthy again, thank goodness. but i want to go to andong to rest."

"oh, that's wonderful. let's do something—what if we both go and rent a place together? what do you think?" her mother replied, a gentle smile on her lips. eunji nodded enthusiastically, feeling genuinely happy. she would see her friends and maybe even stay the whole summer.

"what could be better?" she thought, smiling.

after breakfast, she strolled through the backyard where her mother had planted an array of colorful flowers. she lay on the grass, gazing up at the sky, and dialed min jeong's number, missing her friend.

"hello?" came a voice on the other end.

"min! how have you been?" she asked warmly, a big smile on her face.

"hmm, miss eunji finally remembered she has a friend named min jeong, huh?" the girl from the other side replied sarcastically with a laugh.

"i know, i know," eunji chuckled. "a lot has happened, and i'm calling because i'll be leaving seoul in a few days. if you want to meet up soon, i'm free" she added with a nervous laugh.

"omg! of course, let's have lunch together! you have to tell me everything" min jeong said with excitement tinged in her voice. they agreed to meet over the weekend.

˖ ࣪ ‹  ⁺˖ 𓂃THROUGH MUSIC

that evening, after spending the entire day with min jeong, eun-ji returned home and changed into comfortable clothes. she hadn't said a word about beomgyu or chaesoo to winter. as she was settling in, she heard a soft knock at her bedroom door. she was about to open it when she heard his voice.

"don't. please don't open the door. i don't want you to see me. but... i know you're going to andong tomorrow, and i wanted to say goodbye." he paused, sighing.

"i'm sorry for all the times i hurt you. but i've always loved you dearly because you're my only sister. when you come back from andong, we'll spend days together, going to parties and soobin's basketball games," he said, chuckling softly.

hot tears rolled down eunji's cheeks as she listened to his kind words, finally feeling the warmth in them.

"goodnight, eunie. get well soon. i love you" he said before walking away.

at last, the siblings had made amends, and eunji felt a small weight lifted from her shoulders. but there was still one more person to make peace with. would she ever reconcile with her soulmate?

that, she thought, would be left to fate.

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